Drew Brees has said he will "never agree" with players kneeling during the national anthem amid the resurgence of the Black Lives Matter movement.
He made the controversial remark on Wednesday in an interview with Yahoo Finance when asked for his thoughts on how the NFL should respond to the resurgence of the movement when the new season begins.
"I will never agree with anybody disrespecting the flag of the United States of America or our country," the quarterback for the New Orleans Saints said.
Brees justified his view by saying that the national anthem makes of him think of the military sacrifices his grandfathers made during WW2. He also thinks "about all that has been sacrificed, not just those in the military, but for that matter, those throughout the civil rights movement of the '60s and all that has been endured by so many people until this point."
"Is everything right with our country right now? No, it's not," Brees said. "We still have a long way to go. But I think what you do by standing there and showing respect to the flag with your hand over your heart, is it shows unity. It shows that we are all in this together, we can all do better and we are all part of the solution."
The act of kneeling during the national anthem was popularised by San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick, who did it to protest police brutality in the US.
However, Kaepernick was faced with widespread criticism for his action both from within the NFL and from observers including President Trump.
But despite this, Kaepernick was joined by other players in this form of protest, and it has now spread to other forms of sport and even the police force itself, with North Carolina police recently kneeling in solidarity with Black Lives Matter protestors.
Brees has now been slammed by his fellow sportspeople and fans for his statement about the national anthem.
LeBron James tweeted: "You literally still don't understand why Kap was kneeling on one knee?? Has absolute [sic] nothing to do with the disrespect of [U.S. flag] and our soldiers (men and women) who keep our land free." He also pointed out that his father-in-law served in the military and, "never found Kap peaceful protest offensive because he and I both know what's right is right and what's wrong is wrong!"
Michael Thomas, Brees' teammate, also condemned his statement, tweeting: "We don't care if you don't agree and whoever else how about that."
Former 49ers nose tackle Ian Williams told Brees to "stop hiding behind the flag and let your racism be seen for what it is."
Meanwhile, another Twitter user who identified himself as a Muslim Marine explained that as a serviceman, he did not find the act of kneeling during the anthem offensive.
"Knowing why some NFL players knelt in the first place ie raising awareness for racial justice, I don't find their action disrespectful to my service or the Flag," he said.
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